These are difficult and uncertain times when stepping out of one’s house can mean taking on risks to one’s health and very life because of possible exposure to COVID-19. The lack of comprehensive mass testing and the national government’s focus on military solutions instead of medical solutions to address the pandemic increase the stress that most Filipinos living in the National Capital Region (NCR) and surrounding provinces are currently experiencing. Each one of us tries to cope as best as we can and resort to various means to exorcise fears. Still, we in WeGen try very hard not to dwell on worries, and instead focus on our personal and professional commitment to our work.
Take our own Renato “Rhenz” Lachica from the Human Resources and Administration Department, for instance. Rhenz is our payroll and benefits officer, and now that we are under living in quarantine and working remotely, his work is very important.
“It’s a code that we payroll officers keep: “tamang sahod sa tamang araw” (loosely translated, “correct salaries on the correct date”). Because we’re part of the HR team, we are aware of the different circumstances that our employees face – their economic needs, their dependents. Because of this, we also know the importance of ensuring that we release salaries on the days that employees expect them,” he said.
This awareness has never been sharper than now. “In the last two months, we at WeGen have been witness to the deep compassion being practiced by our management, specially by our founder Michael Saalfeld. Daily we read news reports and stories on social media of so many Filipinos who have lost their means of income because their companies implemented a no-work, no-pay policy. So many have also been unjustly excluded or disqualified from the government’s social amelioration program (SAP) and have gotten only the barest food support from the local officials of their communities, municipal and city governments. We’re beyond lucky in WeGen that we haven’t had to worry about our immediate financial needs because the company ensures that we all receive our salaries even as we work remotely, “he said.
Compassion-Driven
It is precisely this compassion that also gives Rhenz the energy and – let it be said – the courage to go out every two weeks and sometimes even more frequently to process and send the salaries of WeGen employees, specifically those who live in the provinces and do not have bank accounts yet.
Because of the need to ensure physical distancing for health and safety reasons, the lines of customers making use of the services of money forwarders are always long: one has to line up as early as one or even two hours before the offices open at 9am. By then, the heat has begun to build up and people wearing their somewhat stifling masks fan themselves and try to curb their impatience and worry about getting exposed to COVID19. “I’m usually in line by 8am, but even then the lines are already long. Sometimes a remittance center encounters technical problems and can’t provide the service I need to process money transfers to some areas. When this happens, I have to look for other money forwarding offices and stand in line all over again,” Rhenz said.
Does he ever get worried about getting sick while outside?
“Of course, I do, that goes without saying; but I take all the safety precautions, and I am very conscious about keeping a safe distance away from other people. For the most part though, I focus on why it’s important that I get the job done. I need to send the salaries of our employees in the provinces on time. I know that they’re waiting for it, that they need it for their families. I know that a day late makes a big difference when it comes to meeting the basic needs of people who live from payout to payout. This is what I keep in mind. If Sir Michael can exercise so much compassion and kindness in continuing to sign our payroll, the least that we can do individually is to work as best as we can even under these unusual circumstances,” he said.
A Different Kind of Company
When Rhenz is not processing the payroll and monitoring the records of employee benefits, he also processes the other documentary requirements to help ensure that WeGen’s employees will be able to return to work safely when operations resume. “All of this keeps me very busy – so busy that I forget there’s a pandemic,” he joked.
With his wife Dinky and daughter Katrina Heleen, Rhenz spends his free hours watching – of all things – documentaries on pandemics, epidemics, and natural disasters. He explains the somewhat strange choice of entertainment fare given the current health crisis the country and the rest of the world are facing as a way for him to understand what is happening. “I guess it’s a coping mechanism on my part, trying to understand the origins of all these disasters and disease outbreaks,” he said.
Finally, and on behalf of his family, Rhenz expressed gratitude anew to WeGen.
“We really are a different kind of company. I’ve worked in other companies, and they were nothing like WeGen when it comes to treating their employees. We hired people almost right before the quarantine, and they’re already enjoying benefits and salaries. No one is left behind in WeGen. We’re really like a family,” he said. #